Buffing mechanism for cars



(No Model.) 4 Sheets$heet 1.

G. wng'rmenonsn, Jr. BUFI'ING MECHANISM FOR CARS.

No. 499,335. I Patented June 13, 1893 FIE-Ll-- wimsssss: mvsn'ron,

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(No Model.) 7 4 SheetsSheet 2.

v G.. WESTINGHOUSE, Jr.

BUFFING MECHANISM FOR (JARS.

No. 499,335. Patented June 13, 1893.

WITNESSES:

QWWKMM (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 41 G. WESTINGHOUSE, J'r.. BUFPING MECHANISM FOR CARS.

No. 499,335. Patented June 13', 1393.

913253909 9g 939 739 @JZWM M NITED GEORGE \VESTINGHOUSE, J 11., 0F IIT'ISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

BUFFING MECHANISM FOR CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 499,335, dated June 13, 1893.

Application filed April 11, 1891. Serial No. 338,523- (No model) To all whom it may concern.-

Be itknown thatI, GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE, J r., a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny. and State of Pennsylvania, have invented or discovered certain new and useful Ir'r. revcments in Buffing Mechanism,of which improvements the following is a specification.

In Letters Patent No. 391,997, granted to me October 30, 1888, I have described and claimed certain improvements in buffing apparatus, consisting of two parts or members, one movable toward and from the other, intercalating or overlapping friction plates and awedge like clamping mechanism for forcing and holding the overlapping plates into frictional relation to each other.

The invention described herein relates to certain improvements in the construction of bufling mechanism of the character described, and also in the relative arrangement of the devices or elements forming the same.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure l is a sectional elevation of my improved buffing apparatus as applied to the draw gear of a railway car. Fig. 2 is a transverse section, the plane of section being indicated by the line m, as, Fig. 1. Fig. is a view partly. plan and partly in section of the same. Fig."et is a detail view of one of the friction plates. Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are views in elevation of a car having the buffing mechanism applied thereto, and showing different arrangements of the rods connecting the mechanism at opposite ends of the car. Figs. 8 and 0 are Views partly in plan and partly in elevation, illustrating the operation of the bufiing mechanism when subjected to a pull; and, Figs. 10 and 1]. are similar views of the buffing mechanism, when subjected to a push or compression.

The housing of the apparatus described and shown in said Letters Patent is a single casting on integral structure surrounding the friction plates and entirely inclosing the main draft or buffing springs. In the present form I make the housing in two separate parts or sections 1 1, each part being trough shaped as shown in Fig. 2, and in some instances, provided with flanges, 2, 2 adapted to engage guide ways formed on or by the longitudinal sills 3 of the ear. The parts 1 1 areheld ti)? gether by heavy wrought iron or steel plates at preferably united in form of a U shaped strap, these plates or the ends of the U shaped strap fit between the flanges 2,2, and are riveted or bolted to the parts or sections 1 l as shown in Fig. 2.

Within pockets formed at one end of the housing are arranged the inner ends of friction plates 7, 7 In the manufacture of these plates they are made of an increased length, and this surplusage is bent over onto the body of the plates, thereby forming distance blocks 8 which serve to properly space the plates as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, and also serve to strengthen or re-inforce the portion of the plates through which the pins or rivets employed for securing such plates, pass. As described in said Letters Patent, a like series of plates 10,10 are arranged alternately between the plates 7, 7 The plates 10, 10 are attached to carriers or wedge plates 11, 11 by belts or rivets in the same manner as the plates 7, 7 are attached to the parts or sections of the housing. The carriers 11 and 11 are made trough shape as shown in Fig. 2, and are arranged on its upper and lower sides of the wedge block 6, which is provided on opposite'sides with a series of wedge like or inclined faces 12 adapted to engage correspondingly shaped faces formed on the inner walls of the carriers 11 and 11, as shown in Fig. 1. Through the closed end of the strap 4 and through the wedgeblock 6, is passed the draft pin 13 connected at its outer end to the draw bar or coupler. As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the carriers 11 and 11 are made considerably longer than the housing so that when the buffer is in normal position, the ends of the carriers will project beyond the ends of the housing. Between the closed end of the strap 4., and a follower plate lat bearing against the front ends of the carriers is placed the main spring or springs 15 of the buffer. If desired the spring might bear directly against the ends of the carriers, but it is preferred to employ the follower plate as insuring an equal bearing of the springs against the carriers, thereby effecting an equal and simultaneous movement of both carriers. To render the movements of the carriers equal and simultaneous, itis preferred to form them with inter-engaging lugs 17 and recesses 18,

so that the movement of one carrier will effeet the movement of the other. The wedgeblock is held so that its inclined faces 12 bear yieldingly against the corresponding faces of the carriers bythe initial spring 19 interposed between the rear end of the wedge block and the bearing plate through which the draft pin 13 passes.

In the manner of applying the buffing mechanism to a car, shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the front and rear bearing blocks 22 and 23 are bolted to the center sills 3, said blocks being arranged a distance apart equal to the normal distance between the bearing plate 20 and the closed end of the U shaped strap as shown in Figs. 8 to 11, inclusive. The front and rear blocks are tied together by the hanging straps 24, whose ends are turned up, so as to more securely engage said blocks 22 and 23 to which the straps are further secured by the bolts attaching the blocks to the center sills, as shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. The rear blocks 23 are connected to the end sills by straps 26, whose rear ends are bent down over the rear block and their fronts bent up around the end sills 25, said ends being bolted to the ear blocks and end sills respectively. In addition to thus binding the blocks to each other and to the car, the straps 24 and 2G serve as guides and supports for the bufling mechanism, the flanges 2, 2, on the housings fitting between said straps which serve as guides for the housing as shown. When arranged as shown in Figs. 8 to 11, inclusive, the end of the U shaped strap bears against the front blocks 22 when the coupler is subjected to a pull, and the bearing plate 20 bears against the rear blocks when the coupler is subjected to a push, but whether a strain is applied to the front of rear block it is transmitted to the other block by the straps 24, and when applied to the rear block such strain is further transmitted to the end sills by the straps 20.

In order to relieve the center sills and frame of the car from strains incident to a pull on the coupler, the front blocks 22 at each end of the car are provided with laterally projecting ears or lugs 27 and to said iugs are secured the ends of rods 28 passing along under the cars and connecting the front blocks at one end of the car with those at the opposite end. These connecting rods, forming as they do in connection with the buffing mechanism a continuous draft rigging may pass through the body bolsters and cross tie timbers of the car, as shown in Fig. 5, thus providing a nearly direct line of pull from one bnfling mechanism to the other. Or, if desired, these rods may be arranged as the ordinary truss-rods of a car and used in lieu of such truss-rods as shown in Fig. 6. Or said rods may pass over the body bolsters and cross-tie timbers, as shown in Fig. 7, suitable chafing plates being secured on said timbers under the rods.

3y reference to Figs. 1, 4., 5, 6 and 7 the operation of the construction hereinbefore described, Will 'be clearly understood. In case of a pull on the coupler, the buffing mechanism at the front end of the car is moved in the direction of the pull until the U shaped strap 4 bears against the blocks 22, the continued outward movement of the draft-pin operating through the bearing plate 20 compresses the spring 19, and through said spring moves the wedge-block to the right, thereby forcing the carriers outward and compressin g the friction plates 7 and 10, and 7" and 10 together with a great force. As soon as the bearing plat 20 comes in contact with the 1' tr ends or the carriers 11 and 11 the latter are moved forward and with them the plates 10, 10, the latter sliding between the plates 7, 7 During this forward movement of the carriers, the springs 15 and 16 are compressed. By this construction the force or momentum of the forward movement of the coupler is absorbed and gradually transferred to the block 22, by the intercalating plates 7 and 10, and partly by the springs 15 and 10, in lieu of being suddenly transferred to the center sills of the car, as is done in the usual construction of draft rigging. 'From the blocks 22 at the front end of the car the strain is transmitted by the rods 28 to the corresponding blocks at the rear end of the car, thus relieving the center sills and frame of the car from the longitudinal pull. This manner of con necting the coupling mechanisms at each end of the car practically results in the car being propelled from its rear end, the rods 28 being placed under such tension by their turnbuekles 29, that any strain applied to the bl cks 22 at on 1 end is transmitted almost ontirely to the blocks at the opposite end.

\Vhen the coupler at either end of the car is subjected to a push or inward thrust, the coupler bears against the U shaped strap 4, thereby moving the housing inward and through the medium of springs 15, 16, and follower plate lft, imparts a backward thrust to the carriers 11. and 11. so as to cause the inn clined faces 12 to ride up the inclines of the wedge block 6 and thereby secure the frictional engagement of the plates 7 and 10 and also drives the carriers 11 and 11 backward until they abut against the bearing plate 20, which is in its normal position against the blocks 23. Backward movement of the wedge block is resisted by the spring 1.9,and hence the carriers will be forced outward, thus compressing the intercalating plates until the friction between the inclined faces on the wedge block and the carriers is sufficient to overcome the resistance of the spring 19, when the spring is compressed sulliciently to al ow the c." )l'S to bear against the bearing plate 20. Any further inward movement of the coupler, the spring 19 then being at the limit of its compression thereby holding the wedge block stationary or tending to force it forward, causes the plates 7 7 to slide between the plates 10 10 and a compression of TIC the springs and 16. Thus the inward movement of the coupler is, by reason of the triotion of the intercalatingplates and the tension of springs 15 and 16, gradually transferred to the blocks 23, and from said blocks 23 to the blocks 22 by the straps 24, and to the end sill 25 by the straps 26.

It is characteristic of a part of my improved construction, 2'. e. the employment of the rods connecting the couplers, all movements of the coupler whether the result of a pull or apush, are transmitted to the sills and tion plates connected to and operated by the housing and carrier plates, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination in a bufiEing apparatus, of a sectional housing,a U-shaped strap having its ends embracing and secured to the parts of the housing, interlocking carrier plates extending beyond the housing at each end thereof, a spring or springs interposed between the end of the U-shaped strap and the carriers, a wedge block for forcing the carriers outwardly, a bearing plate, a spring interposed between the wedge block and the bearing plate and intercalatin g friction plates connected to and operated by the housing 1 and carrier plates, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination of a coupler or draw bar, a buifing mechanism operated thereby, front and rear blocks for limiting the movements of the buffing mechanism, a strap secured to and connecting the rear blocks and front sill of the car, a strap secured to and connecting the front and rear blocks and forming a guide and support for the buffing mech- 5o anism, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of a coupler or draw bar, a frictional buffing mechanism operated thereby, front and rear blocks for limiting the movements of the buffing mechanism, an up- 5 5 per straposecuredto and connecting the rear blocks and front sill of the car, a lower stap secured to and connecting the front and rear blocks, flanges formed on the housing of the bufiing mechanism and guided between the 0 upper and lower straps, substantially as set forth.

5. In a frictional buffing mechanism, a housing for the frictional members formed in sections in combination with plates secured to the sections and uniting the same, and acarrier having frictional members which engage the frictional members of the housing, substan tially as set forth.

6. In a frictional buffing mechanism, the

combination with a housing and carriers having co acting frictional devices connected thereto of interlocking devices on the carriers for insuring equal and simultaneous longitudinal movements of the carriers, substantially as set forth.

7. In africtionalbuffing mechanism, ahousing for the frictional members formed in sections in combination with plates secured to the sections and uniting the same, substan- 8c tially as set forth.

8. A buffing mechanism having in combination therewith intercalating plates, the ends ofsaid plates where they are secured to the housing and carriers being bent over onto 8 5 the body of the plate, thereby forming distance blocks and strengthening the ends of p the plates, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

GEO. WESTINGHOUSE, JR. Witnesses:

CHARLES C. WOLFE, DARWIN S. WOLCOTT. 

